Pamela Anderson topless covered for PETA campaign in London 2006

Pamela Denise Anderson (born July 1, 1967) is a Canadian American actress and model. Anderson is best known for her roles on the television series Home Improvement, Baywatch and V.I.P. after rising to fame as Playmate of the Month for Playboy magazine in February 1990. Anderson has also appeared in films such as Raw Justice (1994), Barb Wire (1996) and Blonde and Blonder (2008) and was inducted into Canada’s Walk of Fame in 2006.

Anderson is an activist for the animal rights movement and has conducted campaigns condemning the commercial fur industry and promoting veganism through the animal rights organization People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).

Anderson was born in Ladysmith, British Columbia, the daughter of Barry, a furnace repairman, and Carol (née Grosco) Anderson, a waitress. Her great-grandfather, Juho Hyytiäinen, was Finnish, a native of Saarijärvi, and left the Grand Duchy of Finland (which was a part of the Russian Empire at the time) in 1908. He changed his name to Anderson when he arrived as an immigrant. Anderson also has Russian ancestry on her mother’s side.

Anderson got some press coverage right after her birth as the country’s “Centennial Baby”, having been the first baby born on July 1, 1967, the 100th anniversary of Canada’s official founding via the Constitution Act, 1867.

Anderson suffered sexual abuse as a child, a fact she revealed publicly in 2014: she was molested by a female babysitter from ages 6 to 10, raped by a 25-year-old man when she was 12, and gang-raped by her boyfriend and six of his friends when she was 14.

Anderson attended Highland Secondary School in Comox, British Columbia. During high school, she played on the volleyball team. She graduated in 1985. In 1988, Anderson moved to Vancouver and worked as a fitness instructor.